IMPACT: International Journal of Research in Applied,

Natural and Social Sciences (IMPACT: IJRANSS)

ISSN(P): 2347-4580; ISSN(E): 2321-8851
Vol. 5, Issue 5, May 2017, 11-20
Impact Journals

DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE AND VISIT PATTERN OF MALL CUSTOMERS IN UDAIPUR

TANVI KHURANA1 & SEEMA DWIVEDI2

1
Research Scholar, Department of Family Resource Management, College of Home Science,
MPUAT, Udaipur, Rajasthan, India
2
Associate Professor, Department of Family Resource Management, College of Home Science,
MPUAT, Udaipur, Rajasthan, India

ABSTRACT

The intensity of rivalry in the retail market is high and demands a need to manage shopping malls
appropriately and understand the general consumer behavior during visits at a shopping mall in terms of their main reasons for
visiting the mall and attitude in order to attract shopping mall visitors to visit these malls. The purpose of the study
aimed to determine consumers main reasons for visiting the shopping mall and their frequency of visits at the mall.
The study was conducted in three malls in Udaipur city. A sample of 90 customers (30 from each mall) was selected for
the present study. Questionnaire and interview techniques were used for data collection. Frequency and percentage were used
for analysis of data. The findings of the study revealed that the consumers visit the shopping mall with certain reasons in mind
and the frequencies of visits of these consumers vary. The majority of the respondents were females (55.55%), in the age
group 20-30 years (46.66%), had an annual family income 2-5 lakhs, engaged in private job, graduates and post-graduates
equally, single (unmarried) and belonged to nuclear family (70%) Majority of the respondents visited the mall once a month
(31.11%) or once a fortnight (24.44%) to watch a movie (60%), for shopping (51.11%) or visit an eatery (40%). Mostly the
respondents visited the mall on weekends (55.55%), spent 3-4 hours in the mall (53.33%), preferred car (44.44%) or 2-wheeler
(28.88%) for a visit and were accompanied by friends (42%) or family (28.88%). This study contributes to the current
literature and provides valuable information to retailers and shopping mall managers, with regard to marketing
communications and marketing strategies that aim to increase the frequency of visits of consumers at the shopping mall.

KEYWORDS: Retailing, Shopping Mall, Malls, Customer

INTRODUCTION

Shopping malls play an important role in the retail sector and these malls have been in existence for more than 90
years. They have adapted to new designs and tenant varieties to meet the changes in consumers needs, desires, values, and
lifestyles (Telci, 2013). Shopping malls are characterized as venues that provide a comfortable shopping experience and have
turned into social centers and recreational and entertainment facilities for various activities (Telci, 2013).

The retailing sector in India has undergone significant transformation in the past 10 years. Retailing is gradually
inching its way towards becoming the next boom industry. Organized retailing is changing the whole concept of shopping in
terms of consumer buying behavior. Shopping today is much more than just buying- it is an experience itself.
Over the last few years, retail has become one of the fastest growing sectors in the Indian economy. Traditionally, Indian retail
sector has been characterized by the presence of a large number of small-unorganized retailers. However, over the last half

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 12 Tanvi Khurana & Seema Dwivedi

decade, the Indian consumer market has seen a significant growth of various retail formats such as malls, supermarkets,
department stores, discount stores, etc. Mall culture in India has grown with an incredible pace.
The malls have become a sensation in terms of changing the lifestyle of Indians- the way they are shopping and socializing.
With this transition taking place, the shopping behavior of customers is likely to change as these formats were not in existence
in the country until recently.

Many big cities in India have received enormous economic and social growth from these malls making them one of
the most major cities not only in India but around the world as well.

The liberalization policy pursued by the Indian government in retail sector has fuelled the growth of malls in different
regions of the country. Private companies are investing large amounts of money to design and create malls to provide
tangential benefits of shopping and provide consumers access to global brands. (Khare, 2011)

Saturation in the growth and number of malls in the metropolitan cities has forced mall operators to explore options
in Tier II and III cities. The smaller cities are attractive due to low rental and operating costs (KPMG, 2009).
The slowdown experienced by Indian economy in the last few years has affected the retail industry. The malls in bigger cities
experienced decrease in consumer footfall and diminishing sales. This led to a surge of mall investment activity in the Tier II
cities of the country. The cheaper real estate prices, low entry costs and availability of space in Tier II and III cities offer
excellent investment opportunities compared to bigger cities (Dwivedi, 2010). In the last decade, the smaller cities have
witnessed a change in consumption preferences of the consumers (KPMG, 2009; Dwivedi, 2010). Ernst and Young state that
in the last two years growth in the number of malls in smaller cities has been 55 percent compared to 26 percent in
the metropolitan cities (Sinha, 2010). The arrival of malls in smaller cities of India promises to transform shopping and
recreation in these cities. The assortment of services and products, spatial ambience and amusement facilities target
the shopper-tourist (Robertson, 1995). This can be seen in the case of a small city like Udaipur. With an expected growth in
the retail sector and the tourism industry riding on the high wave, the city has become the perfect ground for investment
prospects and many companies are trying to cash upon the opportunity. They are understanding the need of the present age and
the demand of the growing tourists; comprehending the changing lifestyle and the increasing affluence of the society; realizing
the potential of Udaipur and the need of planned retailing and hence they are bringing a new era that is evident with the current
projects.

Shopping malls have become a part of a contemporary consumer shopping, culture (Van Eden, 2006) where
the diverse shopping behavioral needs are addressed (Ahmed et al., 2007). Malls presage more than stores and selling
(Gottdiener, 1995) and promote a different lifestyle and buying phenomenon. Shopping mall customers visit shopping malls
not only for searching for particular products, but they also view these visits as an entertainment activity that provides fun and
pleasure from the shopping experience (Kim et al., 2011). Shopping mall visitors tend to engage in various activities during
shopping malls visits (Farrag et al., 2010).

Thus, it becomes vital to understand the visitors reasons for visiting shopping malls and activities they engage in
during their mall visits. Profiling customers by their choice of promotional mix will provide more meaningful ways to identify
and understand various customer segments and to target each segment with more focused marketing strategies.
Understanding the consumers reasons for visiting shopping malls could assist in the segmentation of these consumers, which
will provide valuable input into the development of marketing policy to attract more customers to visit the shopping malls, and

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 Demographic Profile and Visit Pattern of Mall Customers in Udaipur 13

further increase their frequency of visit at the mall.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

According to Gilboa (2009), shopping mall visitors can visit shopping malls to participate in mall-initiated activities
as part of the entertainment. These entertainment activities include childrens programs and cultural events. Consumptive
activities are activities that involve visiting the coffee-shops/restaurants, gaining new knowledge regarding new products and
trends, and window shopping.

Kuruvilla and Joshi (2010) added that, within a shopping mall, shopping mall visitors may be categorized into groups
that differ in their shopping reasons such as browsing, purchasing clothing, shoes, accessories and gifts. Kuruvilla and Joshi
(2010) pointed that different shopping mall visitors patronize the shopping mall and can have an interest in different groups of
products. Some may have purposeful shopping activities like having refreshments or watching a movie, while others may visit
the objective of buying.

Farrag et al. (2010) indicated that window shopping involves a situation where a shopping mall visitor browses or
goes through window displays to feel part of shopping mall culture and environment. This browsing on window displays
allows shopping mall visitors to keep track of fashions and keep themselves informed of the latest changes in the retail market.
Shopping mall visitors also visit restaurants and coffee shops in the shopping mall just to have a cup of coffee or for lunch.
In addition, family members can also go to these restaurants together for family bonding (Farrag et al., 2010).

Telci (2013) examined the shopping motives of shopping mall visitors living in Turkey to understand the shopping
mall consumer small patronage behaviour.

Khare (2011) also examined the influence of hedonic and utilitarian shopping motives on shopping mall consumers
attitudes towards shopping malls in the smaller cities of India, and the results revealed that shopping mall consumers visit
malls for both hedonic and utilitarian shopping motives. In addition, Farrag et al. (2010) investigated utilitarian and hedonic
motives using ethnographic methods to establish an understanding of the shopping mall experience as perceived by Egyptian
shopping mall visitors.

In United States of America (USA), Jackson et al. (2011) investigated the extent to which consumers attitudes
towards shopping mall attributes and shopping value derived from a shopping mall visit differ across gender and generational
cohorts.

Chebat et al. (2010) in Canada examined shopping mall attributes such as access to the shopping mall, shopping mall
image and store atmosphere that may be used to draw shopping mall visitors to the shopping malls.

METHODOLOGY

The study was conducted in Udaipur city of Rajasthan state. There are three shopping malls in Udaipur city, namely
RK Mall, Panchvati by Kothari Group, which opened in 2007, Celebration Mall, Bhuwana by Advance India Projects Ltd.
(AIPL) which opened in 2011 and the Lake City Mall, Ashok Nagar by RSG Group which opened in 2012. All the three malls
comprised the sampling units and were visited to select the sample for data collection.

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 14 Tanvi Khurana & Seema Dwivedi

Customers were surveyed using Time location cluster sampling technique. This was necessitated by the fact that
most of the malls have different customer segments visiting at different times at different locations in the mall.

For examples housewives visit the malls mostly between 11.00am to 3.00pm, students from 4.00pm to 7.00pm and
families from 7.00pm to 10.00pm. Similarly, different locations in a mall are visited by different segments. For example,
grocery area is visited by mostly middle age people, movies again by families, music shops by the young.

The customers in the shopping mall were intercepted randomly at different locations (multiplex, food court,
departmental store, apparel store, etc.) and different time of the day (such as morning, afternoon, evening) so as to include all
types of customer segments. The customers, thus intercepted were screened to select the regular customers, i.e. those who have
visited a shopping mall of Udaipur five times in the past one year. After screening, the data were collected from the customers.
A total of 90 customers comprised the first sample for the study with 30 customers selected from each of the three malls.
Questionnaire technique was used for getting information from customers. Frequency and percentage were used for analysis of
data.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

Gender

The data in Figure. 1 highlight that among the visitors in the mall more than half (55.56%) of them were females, whereas
44.44 per cent of respondents were males.

Figure 1: Percentage Distribution of Respondents by Gender

Age

As depicted in Figure. 2, maximum percentage (46.67%) of the respondents belonged to the age group 20-30 years
and 17.78 percent were in the age group 30-40 years. Only 2.22 per cent customers were above 60 years. This data reflects that
the malls were most frequently visited by the 20-30 years age group. These young adults are impulsive buyers, for whom
shopping from the malls is more of a status symbol. Another reason for this high percentage of footfalls from this category can
be their sudden spurt in disposable income, which has seen a considerable rise in India in the recent past.

Figure 2: Percentage Distribution of Respondents by Age

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 Demographic Profile and Visit Pattern of Mall Customers in Udaipur 15

Annual Family Income

The Table 1 also illustrates that maximum respondents (31.11%) had an annual family income between 2-5 lakh and
26.67 per cent respondents had family income more than 10 lakh. Least (17.78%) respondents had an annual family income
less than 2 lakh.

Profession

According to Table 1, mostly the respondents (24.44%) who visited the shopping mall were engaged in
the private sector service followed by businessmen (17.78%) and students (16.67%).

Educational Qualifications

It is evident from Table 1 that an equal percentage (33.33%) of visitors to the mall were graduates and post-graduates
and 15.56 per cent and 13.33 per cent were diploma holders and 12th pass respectively.

Marital Status

As per the data in Table 1, more than half of the respondents (55.56%) visiting a mall were single
whereas 44.44 per cent of the respondents were married.

Family Type

The data in Table 1 indicate that the majority (70%) of the respondents who visited the mall belonged to nuclear
family whereas 30 per cent respondents belonged to joint family. Further probe into the investigation reveals that according to
some respondents since there are more responsibilities in a joint family and less time is available, therefore there are a low
percentage of visitors from joint families.

The results were supported by a study conducted by Kuruvilla and Joshi (2010) who found that
the majority of the consumers are in the age group of 25-45, highly educated, double income families belonging to middle and
upper income groups. The high rupee volume purchasers comprise more men, larger families, higher incomes, higher
qualifications, more professionals and businessmen. These heavy shoppers visit the malls with their family and spend on all
categories of items more than the other two groups showing significant differences in the mall related behavior.
The heavy shoppers have a more active lifestyle, value, fun and security.

Visit Frequency to Shopping Mall

Mall culture has been accepted and welcomed in a big way by the Indian consumer and this fact comes out of
the data shown in the Table 2, with visitors who visited a mall at least once a month (31.11%) or once a fortnight (24.45%)
although a very less percentage visited the mall more than once a week (8.89%).

Reasons for Visiting The Mall

According to Table 3, the most prominent reasons cited by the respondents for their visits were watching a movie
(60%), shopping (51.11%), visit an eatery (40%) and indulging in window shopping (26.66%).
Least response (4.44%) was obtained for participation in events and promotional activities and gaming equally.

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 16 Tanvi Khurana & Seema Dwivedi

The results substantiate the findings by Lotz et al. (2004) who studied the similarities and differences between mall
entertainment seekers and mall shoppers and found that there are different motives for individuals who visit a mall for
entertainment activities versus those who visit for shopping purposes.

Figure 3: Percentage Distribution of Respondents by Day of Visit to Mall

Day of Visit to a Mall

Figure. 3 illustrates that more than half (55.56%) of the respondents preferred weekend to visit a mall and
37.78 percent said there was no specific day for them to visit such places. The reasons may be the availability of ample time to
respondents during the weekend. Another reason may be that the society is witnessing a change where the presence of working
couples (both the husband and the wife are working) and nuclear families is on the rise. So weekend becomes a natural choice
for choosing to visit a mall.

Time Spent in Mall

Data in Table 4 portray that more than half (53.34%) of the people replied that they spent 3-4 hours in the mall and
22.22 per cent said that they usually spend 5-6 hours, which is of course a substantial time in a single day. This can imply that
the people visiting malls dont just drop by; rather they make planned visits. An equal percentage of respondents (4.44%)
spent less than an hour or more than 6 hours in a shopping mall.

Preferred Mode of Travel

Regarding the preferred mode of travel to the mall, Table 5 indicates that highest preference was given to own
conveyance where 44.44 per cent and 28.89 per cent respondents preferred car and 2-wheeler respectively. The results indicate
the propensity of respondents to be self-dependent while opting for visiting the mall, and not depending upon public means of
transportation or hiring an auto etc.

Preferred Company to Visit Mall

Figure 4 shows that the maximum (42.22%) respondents preferred to visit the mall with friends and more than one-
fourth (28.89%) preferred to visit with family. Least preference (4.44%) was given to office colleagues.

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 Demographic Profile and Visit Pattern of Mall Customers in Udaipur 17

Figure 4: Percentage Distribution of Respondents by

Preferred Company to Visit a Mall
CONCLUSIONS

The dual purpose of this study was, firstly, to determine the consumers main reasons for visiting shopping malls
from an Indian perspective and, secondly, to determine the frequency of visits of consumers at the shopping malls. Gilboa
(2009) studied the consumers behavior at the shopping mall in terms of visiting pattern or frequency, which coincides with
the findings of the current study that the frequency of visits among consumers varied. Kim et al. (2011) revealed that shopping
mall customers visit shopping malls not only search for specific products, but they also view these visits as an amusement
activity that provides fun and pleasure from the shopping experience, these findings are supported by the findings of the
current study that consumers visit a shopping mall for entertainment purposes such as watching movies, celebrate special
occasions, and for eating out, not for just buying groceries, Homeware.

REFERENCES
1. Ahmed, Z. U., Ghingold, M., & Dahari, Z. (2007). Malaysian shopping mall behavior: an exploratory study.
Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, 19 (4), 331-348.

2. Chebat, J. C., surgery, M. J., & Grzeskowiak, S. (2010). How can shopping mall management best capture mall
image?. Journal of Business Research, 63 (7), 735-740.

3. Dwivedi, P. R. (2010). Saturation of malls in metros: Prospects in Tier II and III cities. India Retailing.

4. Farrag, D. A., El Sayed, I. M., & Belk, R. W. (2010). Mall shopping motives and activities: a multimethod
approach. Journal of International Consumer Marketing, 22 (2), 95-115.

5. Gilboa, S. (2009). A segmentation study of Israeli mall customers. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 16
(2), 135-144.

6. Gottdiener, M. (1995). Postmodern Semiotics Material Culture and the Forms of Postmodern Life. Blackwell,
Oxford.

7. Jackson, V., Stoel, L., & Brantley, A. (2011). Mall attributes and shopping value: Differences by gender and
generational cohort. Journal of retailing and consumer services, 18 (1), 1-9.

8. Khare, A. (2011). Mall shopping behavior of Indian small town consumers. Journal of retailing and consumer
services, 18 (1), 110-118.

9. Kim, Y. H., Lee, M. Y., & Kim, Y. K. (2011). A new shopper typology: Utilitarian and hedonic perspectives.
Journal of Global Academy of Marketing, 21 (2), 102-113.

Impact Factor(JCC): 3.6754 - This article can be downloaded from www.impactjournals.us

18 Tanvi Khurana & Seema Dwivedi

10. KPMG. (2009). Indian retail: time to change lanes. Retrieved on 14 April, 2014 from
http://rasci.in/downloads/2009/Indian_Retail_Time_change_lanes_2009.pdf

11. Kuruvilla, S. J., & Joshi, N. (2010). Influence of demographics, psychographics, shopping orientation, mall shopping
attitude and purchase patterns on mall patronage in India. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services,
17 (4), 259-269.

12. Lotz, S. L., Eastlick, M. A., & Shim, S. (2000, January). Modeling patrons' activities at entertainment malls: A study
in" flow". American Marketing Association. Conference Proceedings (Vol. 11, p. 256). American Marketing
Association.

13. Robertson, K. A. (1995). Downtown redevelopment strategies in the United States: An end-of-the-century
assessment. Journal of the American Planning Association, 61 (4), 429-437.

14. Sinha, R. (2010). Small towns lead the league for marketers. Retrieved from /http://www.merinews.com/article/small-
towns-lead-the-league-for-marketers/15816847.html

15. Telci, E. E. (2013). High shopping mall patronage: is there a dark side?. Quality & Quantity, 1-12.

16. Van Eeden, J. (2006). The gender of shopping malls: communication, cultural and media studies.
Communication: South African Journal of Communication Theory and Research, 32 (1), 38-64.

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Background Information of Customers N=90

S. No. Demographic Variable Frequency (%)
A. Annual Family Income
1. Less than 2 lakh 16(17.78)
2. 2-5 lakh 28(31.11)
3. 5-10 lakh 22(24.44)
4. Above 10 lakh 24(26.67)
B. Occupation
1. Student 15(16.67)
2. Government Job 14(15.56)
3. Private Job 22(24.44)
4. Business 16(17.78)
5. Homemaker 12(13.33)
6. Other 11(12.22)
C. Educational Qualifications
1. 12th Pass 12(13.33)
2. Graduate 30(33.33)
3. Postgraduate 30(33.33)
4. Diploma 14(15.56)
5. Others 4(4.45)
D. Marital Status
1. Married 40(44.44)
2. Single 50(55.56)
E. Family Type
1. Nuclear 63(70)
2. Joint 27(30)

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Demographic Profile and Visit Pattern of Mall Customers in Udaipur 19

Table 2: Distribution of Respondents by Visit Frequency to Shopping Mall N=90

S. No. Visit Frequency Frequency (%)
1. More than once a week 8(8.89)
2. Once a week 12(13.33)
3. Once a fortnight 22(24.45)
4. Once a month 28(31.11)
5. Once in 2 months 20(22.22)

Table 3: Reason for Visiting the Mall by the Respondents N=90

S. No. Reason for Visit Frequency (%) *
1. Watch a movie 54(60)
2. Shopping 46(51.11)
3. Visit an eatery 36(40)
4. Window shopping 24(26.66)
5. Meet friends 20(22.22)
For personal care
6. 12(13.33)
services
Do comparison
7. shopping/compare 10(11.11)
brands or products
8. Just get away 8(8.88)
Participate in the events
9. 4(4.44)
or promotional activities
10. Gaming 4(4.44)
*Multiple response

Table 4: Distribution of Respondents by Average Time Spent in Mall N=90

S. No. Time Spent Frequency (%)
1. Less than an hour 4(4.44)
2. 1-2 hours 14(15.56)
3. 3-4 hours 48(53.34)
4. 5-6 hours 20(22.22)
5. More than 6 hours 4(4.44)

Table 5: Distribution of Respondents by Preferred Mode of Travel to Mall n=90

S. No. Mode of Travel Frequency (%)
1. Car 40(44.44)
2. Two-wheeler 26(28.89)
3. Public Transport 16(17.78)
4. Walking 8(8.89)

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